Srinagar, Sept 02: Hurriyat (G) Chairman, Syed Ali Geelani Friday asked all the stakeholders to refrain from holding talks with the All Part Delegation (APD) visiting Kashmir on September 4.
The delegation will be led by Home Minister Rajnath Singh and includes some top faces who have been advocating talks with Kashmiri separatists like CPI (M) leader Sitaram Yechury and Chief of Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen Asaduddin Owaisi.
“The Indian parliamentary delegation is coming to Kashmir after passing a resolution that Kashmir an integral part of India, therefore this delegation neither has mandate nor the intention to resolve the dispute of Jammu and Kashmir. We suggest to all stakeholders to refrain from engaging in this meaningless exercise of meeting this delegation,” Geelani said in a statement issued on Friday.
The Kashmir Monitor talked to several other key leaders of different factions of Hurriyat conference asking them to comment on what they think about the incoming delegation.
Former APHC chairman and chief of Muslim Conference, Professor Abdul Gani Bhat said, “Mathematics has no space in politics. I don’t know who meets whom. Well you know… the entire leadership is behind bars. I have no idea whether they will be talking outside or inside jails. It is a collective decision of leadership and people,” he said.
Bhat, who is a key leader of Hurriyat (M) said, “As far as I am concerned I have nothing to do with it. I will follow my own path. I head a political party which is Muslim Conference. We have not taken any decision regarding it,” he said.
“I don’t know whether we should meet or not. I think we should wait what the other leaders do. Muslim Conference wouldn’t want to interfere in what the collective leadership decides,” he said.
Senior Hurriyat (M) leader, Masroor Abbas Ansari said there are many “paid agents” who had met such delegations in the past and such people will continue to meet.
“We know at the end of the day we have to hold talks. Talks are the only way to resolve any issue. But those who have been meeting such delegations and claim being stakeholders representing Kashmiris are actually religious leaders and have no political credibility,” he said.
Ansari said such delegations keep coming and even came in 2010. “Even that interlocutors’ team in 2010 visited here and compiled a report that was later trashed into India’s dustbin,” he said.
Ansari said no talks would be held until India doesn’t accept Kashmir as a dispute region and release all political detainees. “Kashmir issue should be resolved as per UN resolutions. Pakistan is a party to it. The meaningful talks will be held with Hurriyat and not with such people who appear in the middle of any crisis. This is all meaningless and won’t have any impact on the current movement,” he said.
Senior Hurriyat (M) leader and chairman JKLF, Javaid Mir said, “On one side the GOI is sending crores of pellet cartridges to kill Kashmiris and on the other side they are coming to hold talks. Do they have to come for an exhibition here? The leaders have been jailed, people are under curfew. What this delegation has to do here. We are not ready for any dialogue under Indian constitution,” Mir said.
He said there are only three stakeholders on Kashmir issue and no religious parties, Trade leaders or Trade Unions are its stakeholders. “Hurriyat leadership, Pakistan and India are the only three stakeholders. Mainstream leaders of Kashmir are already being represented by India as they have taken oath under its constitution,” he said.
Senior leader of Democratic Freedom Party (DFP) Muhammad Abdullah Tari said as the party chairman Shabir Ahmed Shah has been jailed, this decision can only be taken by him.
“Whatever he says we will go with that,” he said.
Another Hurriyat leader, Hilal Ahmed War categorically denied meeting the high powered delegation of the parliamentarians led by the Home Minister. “What will it yield…nothing!” he exclaimed.